Locally-grown food isn’t just hip, it’s an economic tool

A two-day conference titled “Growing the Appalachian Food Economy: A Forum on Local Food Systems and Sustainable Agriculture” will be held Tuesday, April 3 and Wednesday, April 4, in Asheville.

The forum will provide an opportunity people from all sectors to share ideas and learn practical ways local food systems can increase employment opportunities. It will also help spark entrepreneurial ventures and build local wealth in Appalachian communities.

Forum participants will hear from practitioners and experts on topics that include:

The Naturalist's Corner

I had originally intended to spend today (Monday, Feb. 16) doing a couple of short surveys for the annual Great Backyard Bird Count. But Sunday morning amid more and more (and more and more dire) weather forecasts warning of some pretty heavy winter weather coming our way I began to contemplate counting Sunday instead. Around 9 a.m. Sunday I peeked out the downstairs window. Well, in my yard were 17 wild turkeys. It looked like a large group of jakes and gobblers.